Yes, the newest incarnation of Microsofts Windows operating system is finally off to manufacturing. This probably means that I’ll have it within the next few weeks. On one hand, I’m eager to finally try out the finished product, having now worked with every single Windows version starting from 3.0 – on the other hand I’m really not looking forward to the new learning curve of finding my way around the new user interface.

Anyway right now, I think now is the time to do it. For a change, I finally don’t have any kind of papers to write or other stuff to take care of that would cause me to prefer a stable XP installation. Anyway… here we go.

BTW, I know I haven’t written here in a while – then again, not so much has been happening in my life and who really cares about routine?

-Jan

Because it’s redundant.

;-)

-Jan

As some of you know, I’m writing this on an aging but wonderfully stable IBM ThinkPad X21 series. Now about to end it’s third year of almost 24/7 use, I’m still surprised as to the features IBM keeps adding to it.

When I first got my IBM ThinkPad, it came with almost none of the famously known ThinkVantage suit of tools. OK, it came with lots of tools but their actual usefulness was rather redundant for a geek like myself. I soon opted for the additional diskspace I could get by not installing the tools (especially Rapid Restor).

Only 18 months into using the ThinkPad, I stumbled upon AccessConnections, a tool that really made my life easier by making changes to my network settings based on location profiles. It still wasn’t perfect though: Automatic profile switches didn’t occur at first because of lack of experience as to profile building on my part, DHCP issues (AccessConnections *needs* a working DHCP to automatically switch between profiles) and troubles with my 3com Wireless LAN PCMCIA-card (an early edition x-jack-antenna equipped 802.11b card).

With time came experience and I started appreciating the simple pleasures of easy-configuration switches offered by AccessConnection, still it didn’t really like working with my 3com card.

Today a lot of these issues changed: After upgrading to AccessConnections v3.21, it finally started accepting my card as a real wireless device, offering the whole set of preferences before only available to IBM devices or other vendors cards sold via the IBM website (mainly Cisco). By now AccessConnections is managing my wireless settings (and doing an admirable job, much less cumbersome as the sometimes enfuriating Windows configuration utility.

…. anyway, point being: this machine is now 3 years old, long since out of production and still there’s real, work-experience enhancing software additions made by IBM at no additional cost to myself. Did I mention I’m really looking forward to my next IBM ThinkPad? There is *no* other vendor with this kind of support for their machines. They may be a bit more expensive than others but at the end of their life-cycle, you got more out of them than their money’s worth.

-Jan

Thought my router was broken. Only took 3 hours of trial & error with firmware installations to fix it.

Fun fact #1: The Linksys BEFW11S4 allows you to install firmware updates even when the LEDs on the front tell you to send it to the manufacturer. Just use 192.168.1.1 as IP when TFTP’ing the new image. Even though the HTML interface doesn’t work at that time.

Fun fact #2: When the Wireless Link LED says “disabled” although it is enabled in the HTML interface, something in the firmware is broke. You have to install a 1.3.x firmware to get it up and running again. You also have to install that firmware *twice*, on the first run, the router still says it’s broken.

Fun fact #3: Installing a 1.4.x firmware afterwards will bring back the problem.

It’s 0420 and I’m really really tired. ‘nite

-Jan